Opinion

On Saturday morning I wasn’t even out of bed before my family started demanding that I write to someone about the snarky way the newsies have been commenting on Obama’s Nobel Peace Prize. I’m the designated writer in a family of opinionated people, and it seems they’re all mad about this one. -more-

CAMPAIGN MONEY -more-

It shouldn’t be complicated to build a new animal shelter. In 2002 the voters of Berkeley passed Measure I, the bond measure to fund the construction of a new shelter. Finding an appropriate site has been far harder than persuading the voters of the validity of this cause. -more-

A mere 14 months after China dazzled the world with spectacular opening and closing ceremonies for the XXIX Olympiad it threw a comparably stupendous birthday party for itself. Official festivities lasted eight days and although it was not an invitation-only affair it drew very little attention in our dominant media. I am writing to share the thrill of seeing what I filched from the Internet and from television’s fringe channels. -more-

The U.S. is determined to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. President Obama has said he will “do everything” to stop this. U.S. officials have repeatedly said that no options will be taken off the table, implying that war against Iran is an option. The U.S. has repeatedly claimed that Iran is using its nuclear energy program as a cover for obtaining nukes. We hear this refrain despite the lack of any real evidence and despite the U.S.’s own National Intelligence Estimate and various statements of the International Atomic Energy Administration (IAEA) that there is no evidence that Iran has a nuclear weapons program. -more-

I agree with the Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action (BAMN) that Berkeley does not need another a charter school (“Activists Protest City’s Proposed Charter School,” Oct. 8-14). Besides the paramount issue that a BUSD charter school would “codify separate and inferior education” for black and Latino students, a BUSD-sponsored charter school will tap into limited public resources in terms of facilities, parcel taxes and state money intended for Berkeley public school students. A charter school is open to any student in California. In the current economic environment BUSD public education is already being short-changed. Why siphon off scarce resources?  -more-

A decade ago downtown developer Patrick Kennedy regularly explained to the Zoning Adjustments Board that we needed to approve his use-every-inch projects because it was just that kind of density that produced Paris. That argument disappeared once Kennedy started building seven-plus story buildings; Paris, except for a relatively small and contained office park, is comprised almost exclusively of six-story or smaller buildings. -more-

While UC administrators blame the state government in Sacramento for recent cuts in funding, the top echelons of UC are part of the same web of political nepotism and short-sighted anti-tax idolatry damaging the State’s public services and infrastructure. -more-

As a UC Berkeley alumnus and emeritus CSU faculty member (Long Beach), I strongly support the Oct. 24 Mobilizing Conference to Save Public Education and urge all UC, CSU, community college, and K-12 students, workers, teachers, and their organizations to participate in this movement. -more-

Hassan Fouda in his Oct. 8 Commentary about Gaza tries to show that he cares about human being, about children and civilians. Nice intention. -more-

In his discussion of “What’s at Stake in the KPFA Board Election?” Matthew Hallinan starts out on the right track: there really are important substantive differences between the group he’s part of—the Concerned Listeners (CL)—and just about everyone else involved in the election, including not only the ticket I’m on—Independents for Community Radio—but also the other two slates in the race for the Local Station Board.  -more-

“The undersigned therefore take this means of publicly presenting a few salient facts concerning Begin and his party; and of urging all concerned not to support this latest manifestation of fascism.” -more-